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U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay accused the United States of breaking international law when Texas executed Mexican citizen Humberto Leal Garcia Jr. Thursday night. The execution sparked controversy after the International Court of Justice in the Hague determined in 2004 that the U.S. had violated the Vienna Convention when officials failed to tell foreign inmates about their right to visit their consular officials. But the U.S. Supreme Court voted yesterday that Texas could go ahead with the execution, even over the objection of President Barack Obama. Pillay said today the execution "raises particular legal concerns" about the...

Though it was created with lofty ideals, the United Nations in practice is too often an embarrassment to its noble goals. The latest example came last week as the UN commemorated the 10th anniversary of the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance held in Durban, South Africa, in 2001. That became know as Durban I. Durban II was in 2009 in Geneva and, last week in New York, the UN convened Durban III “to strengthen political commitment to fight racism.” Sounds great in theory, but in practice that “strengthening” last week included the contribution of Iran’s...

UNITED NATIONS, July 8 (UPI) -- The Texas execution of a Mexican national puts the United States in violation of international law, the U.N. human rights chief said Friday. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said federations like the United States have a responsibility to ensure that individual states "respect the international responsibilities assumed by the country as a whole." ...."I am very disappointed that neither the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles nor the governor took steps open to them to prevent this breach of the U.S. obligations under international law from occurring," Pillay said.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights says the United States breached international law by executing a Mexican national. Navi Pillay, in a statement Friday, said he deeply regrets the execution of Humberto Leal Garcia, after a last-minute 5-4 decision by the U.S. Supreme Court denied him a stay of execution Thursday night. "The execution of Mr. Leal Garcia places the U.S. in breach of international law," said Pillay, who is currently on official mission in Mexico. "What the state of Texas has done in this case is imputable in law to the U.S. and engages the United States' international...

A top United Nations official is urging the governor of Texas to call off the execution of a Mexican national convicted of murder because he was not told of his right for diplomatic advice when he was arrested, according to Reuters. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay is calling for Gov. Rick Perry to commute the sentence to life in prison for Humberto Leal Garcia. Garcia was convicted of raping and killing a 16-year-old girl in February 1998. "The lack of consular assistance and advice raises concerns about whether or not Mr. Leal Garcia's right to a fair...

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has turned a blind eye to most of the world’s worst abusers, UN Watch has found. In an exhaustive study, the watchdog group examined all statements by Pillay published on the UN website between September 2008 and June 2010. The findings show “a questionable sense of priorities,” the group reported. “Ms. Pillay turned a blind eye to most of the world’s worst abusers… She failed to voice any concern for victims in 34 countries rated ‘Not Free’ by Freedom House—meaning those with the worst records, and the most needy victims.” Syria was...

(Reuters) - The top U.N. human rights official expressed concern on Wednesday over acts of violence allegedly carried out by members of Ivory Coast's new army, including reports of summary executions, rape and torture. The former rebel Forces Republicaines Cote d'Ivoire (FRCI) is now the backbone of the west African state's armed forces after the ousting of ex-president Laurent Gbagbo two months ago. "Lack of discipline and violence on the part of the newly established army, the FRCI, which is composed of several different groups with no clear command structure, are ... of serious concern," U.N. High Commissioner for Human...

International Affairs: The United Nations wants the United States to provide a factual accounting of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. The Obama administration should tell the U.N. to butt out of U.S. business. Navi Pillay, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said that even though the raid "was a complex operation," it would be "helpful if we knew the precise facts surrounding" bin Laden's death. "The United Nations," she said, "has consistently emphasized that all counterterrorism acts must respect international law." The implication, of course, is that the commandos who killed bin Laden and the executive branch...

The spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion admitted on Thursday that he felt “very uncomfortable” with the killing of Osama bin Laden when he was unarmed. Contrary to initial reports that bin Laden had engaged in a 40-minute gun fight with U.S. Navy Seals, it emerged on Wednesday that the al-Qaida leader had been unarmed when he was shot dead in his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, on Sunday. Answering a question about the killing at a press briefing, Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Rowan Williams also criticized conflicting reports coming from the White House about the events surrounding bin Laden’s death....

The assassination of Osama Bin Laden was a great moment for the United States, as it issued final justice to a man responsible for the death of thousands here at home and abroad. The intelligence necessary to locate Bin Laden has of course become a political football, as the issue of harsh interrogations once again enters the American political consciousness. I think the discussions are important, but the focus needs to be on the here and now. Many have focused on harsh interrogations occurring at the Guantanamo Bay terrorist facility and elsewhere, especially in the 2001-2005 time period. Frankly, that...

The Taliban have cast suspicion on the announcement of Osama bin Laden's death, saying they would not believe the al Qaida leader was dead until they had seen proof or received confirmation from sources close to him. Though US officials have said they confirmed bin Laden's identity both with face-mapping software and DNA tests, the lack of photos of the body and its burial at sea have raised doubts in Afghanistan and Pakistan that the man who evaded American detection for so long has actually been killed. People gather outside the compound where al Qaida leader Osama bin Laden was...

GENEVA – The U.N.'s top human rights official says the global body wants details on the death of Osama bin Laden. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay says the raid on the al-Qaida leader's hideaway in Pakistan "was a complex operation, and it would be helpful if we knew the precise facts surrounding his killing." Pillay has frequently stressed the importance of respecting international law during counter-terror operations

UNITED NATIONS — The UN's chief human rights official led calls by rights activist organizations on Tuesday for Washington to explain whether U.S. forces lawfully killed Osama bin Laden. The request by Navi Pillay, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, came even as the world body continues to falter over its multi-year bid to define terrorism... On the U.S. action in Pakistan Sunday, Pillay agreed that bin Laden was a "very dangerous man" ... But she also said the United States had always "clearly stated they intended to arrest bin Laden if they could." Admitting that taking bin Laden...

Watchdog Group Demands Removal Of Libyan Human Rights Investigator By: Brian Teegarden | “AP/Foxnews.com U.N. Watch, an organization that monitors the world body, says Libyan envoy Najat Al-Hajjaji should be the ‘last person’ investigating human rights abuses, as Libyan jets drop bombs on rebel forces in her homeland. A watchdog group is asking the U.N. to immediately remove a Libyan envoy from her post as an investigator on human rights violations by mercenaries, saying that as a mouthpiece for a regime that’s “deploying hired guns to massacre its own people” it’s “outrageous” to have her in that position. But it’s...

New York, Feb 22 2011 10:10AM Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and the United Nations human rights chief have both called on the Libyan authorities to immediately end their violent crackdown on protesters, and the Security Council is meeting today to discuss the situation in the North African nation. Mr. Ban, in a statement issued by his spokesperson on Monday, said he was “outraged” at press reports that the Libyan authorities have been firing at demonstrators from war planes and helicopters. This is unacceptable,” the Secretary-General <"http://www.un.org/apps/sg/offthecuff.asp?nid=1731">told reporters in Los Angeles, where his currently on an official visit. “This violence against demonstrators...

CAIRO -- The bodies of protesters shot to death by forces loyal to Muammar al-Qaddafi were left on the streets of a restive district in the Libyan capital Tuesday, an opposition activist and a resident said, while the longtime leader defiantly went on state TV to show he was still in charge. The eruption of turmoil in the capital after a week of protests and bloody clashes in Libya's eastern cities has sharply escalated the challenge to Qaddafi. His security forces have unleashed the bloodiest crackdown of any Arab country against the wave of protests sweeping the region, which toppled...

Criminals in Haiti are preying on vulnerable earthquake survivors, even raping women, in makeshift camps set up in Port-au-Prince after the disaster. "With the blackout that's befallen the Haitian capital, bandits are taking advantage to harass and rape women and young girls under the tents," Haiti’s police, chief Mario Andresol, said yesterday. "We have more than 7,000 detainees in the streets who escaped from the national penitentiary the evening of the earthquake ... It took us five years to apprehend them. Today they are running wild." Rachelle Dolce, who is living at a large makeshift camp on the Petionville Club...

EDITORIAL No Honor, Only Horror July 12 There is much to admire in India today, including its vibrant democracy and economy and its rich traditions. It should also lead the way in protecting and empowering women by ending so-called honor killings. Jim Yardley recently reported in The Times the case of Nirupama Pathak, a 22-year-old journalism graduate student from northern India who was found dead in her bedroom in April. Police arrested her mother on suspicion of murder; the family insisted Ms. Pathak had killed herself after confessing she was pregnant. The legal process must move forward, but what is...

Note: The important link in this article is to this “Urgent Appeal to World Leaders to Prevent Atrocities in Libya.“As uprisings sweep the Middle East and North Africa, the bloodiest crackdown is happening, right now, in Libya, where Muammar Gaddafi has ruled for more than 41 years. There are reports of hundreds killed, of massacres in Libya’s second-largest city of Benghazi, of snipers shooting peaceful protesters, of tanks crushing bystanders, of regime gunmen firing on mourners in funeral processions for protesters previously murdered; of rocket-propelled grenades and helicopter gunships used against crowds of demonstrators.That’s Gaddafi. Since Gaddafi came to power...

ANKARA — Shock and outrage swept the globe Monday after Israeli commandos stormed a flotilla of aid ships bound for the Gaza Strip, as the Jewish state's foes and allies closed ranks in condemning the deadly raid. The UN's rights chief Navi Pillay said she was "shocked" at the violence of the raid, which left at least 10 dead, many of them reportedly Turks, while the European Union demanded a full inquiry from Tel-Aviv.